This is my attempt to merge the activation rules from CoC with the FFT rules to give a more friction based and unstructured turn sequence that should throw up some interesting command problems that are sadly lacking in the vanilla rules.
Troop Quality
Whilst I fully understand the reasoning behind these, a few of us at the club find the 7 different classes a bit much with the some of the changes to ROF/to-hit and base quality rating so high or low that they become either unbeatable ‘supermen’ or so abysmal it’s not worth the effort playing. Yes good troops are better and bad troops are worse but everyone in between are usually much of a muchness, and everyone can either have an off day or do something amazing. So in an effort to even it out a bit (and to also admittedly to help with the new activation rules) I’ve come up with the following, obviously please ignore if you dig the vanilla stuff:
- Elite – Quality 2/ To Hit +1/ ROF +1/ Cohesion 8″/ add 1d6 to activation pot
- Veteran – Quality 3/ To Hit +1/ROF 0/ Cohesion 6″
- Regular – Quality 4/ To Hit 0/ ROF 0/ Cohesion 4″
- Conscript – Quality 5/ To Hit -1/ROF 0/ Cohesion 4″
- Reservist – Quality 6/ To Hit -1/ ROF -1/ Cohesion 2″/ -1d6 to activation pot
Unit activation
Each player receives 1d6 for each of the following in their activation pot:
- For each Battalion
- For each Brigade/Regimental HQ
- For each independent Recce Company
- For each FOO
- Soviet doctrine Forces lose 1d6 from their pot
These are rolled at the start of the players phase, the attacking player is the first person to roll in the first phase of the game. If an ‘encounter’ battle then the person with stronger recce force goes first.
Each turn of variable length (although still 12 minutes long as per the rules) and is made up of multiple ‘phases’. A turn is finished when 6 x 6’s are rolled on the activation dice. The player that finishes the turn will have the first phase in the next turn.
The biggest change is this: the turn sequence has been scrapped. This may seem chaotic at first but it will be fine once you get used to it.
What you are able to do in your phase depends on what you roll.
You can add dice together to make another score up to and including 4 but NOT 5 or 6.
1 = team or FOO
2 = Platoon
3 =Company
4 = Battalion
5 = HQ (CoC dice)
6 = Time dice.
On activating on a 1, 2, 3 or 4 then all units in that formation can:
attempt to remove suppression, move, fire or be placed on overwatch.
For calling in artillery see below.
A 5 adds one to your HQ dice (a CoC dice). Once this hits 6 it can be traded in for any of the following:
- Attempt an air strike (as in normal rules but can only be called in by AOP)
- Release reserves/reinforcements. (ignore this if scenario has units turning up at set turns)
- Release helicopters
- EW attack: for each attack the opponent loses 1d6 from their activation pot for the remainder of the turn – can be used more than once per turn!
- Counter battery strike: choose one of opponents Artillery battalions and this will be unavailable for use for the rest of the TURN & will suffer a -1 to all future die rolls to call in as per CB strike in FUBAR table once available again.
- Interdiction strike: choose one reserve/reinforcing battalion that are off table to suffer a catastrophic Interdiction strike – each base in the unit takes a QC test and those that fail don’t make it on the table. Might be good to have this as a scenario specific thing or only used once per game – we tried it and it is bags of fun (or not depending on the results!)
A 6 advances the turn dice, when it reaches 6 then the turn is over and the player who caused it to happen starts the first phase in the new turn.
OK, that’s the basics now for the details!
Once activated
Once a unit is activated it must test to see if it recovers from suppression if it is – roll as for a QC test, if it passes then ok, if not stays supressed.
All units can be put on overwatch, if so they can not move or fire during this phase.
Any unit can move and/or fire depending on its stabilisation and its RoF.
So a unit with SS and ROF 3 could fire once then move full move then fire remaining 2 shots. Stabilised fire, then move half etc. This can be done in any way player wants so Fire then move, move then fire or fire, move, fire.
Activating a team on a 1 means only that team can do something.
Activating a platoon means only that platoon base can do something.
Activating a company means that only platoons from that company and any attached units can do something.
Activating a battalion means that any part or all of the battalion can do something and it can be done in any order you wish.
Obviously stands on overwatch can interrupt at any time when feasible as in normal rules.
Calling in Artillery
- Any non FOO, Recce or Command/HQ platoon activated on a 2 can call in either organic fire support (i.e. battalion mortars) or Brigade level units as per ‘normal’ rules.
- Any FOO, Recce or Cmnd/HQ stand can attempt to call in either Organic, Brigade, Divisional or Corp Artillery units.
- Platoons activated on a 3 or 4 can NOT attempt to call in artillery as they are acting under a Company or Battalion order.
- Any stand attempting to call in artillery fire can do nothing else in that phase
Once the batteries have fired they can NOT be used for the remainder of the TURN. So if an attempt was made to call in and only 1 out of 3 batteries were available for that barrage, then 2 are still available for the remainder of the turn until used up.
(we found this surprisingly easy to remember, but I am going to knock up bases with artillery models on and a dice cell to use a dice to count how many left, both as an aide memoire and just ‘cos I like guns!!)
Tracks and Threads 